Mike Thompson tries again on gun violence

Rep. Mike Thompson of St. Helena opened another push by House Democrats on Friday for legislation to reduce gun violence and target mental health services following the killings of six people in Isla Vista a week ago.

Thompson, an avid duck hunter, was tapped by House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi of San Francisco to lead a gun violence task force after the massacre at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Conn., in December 2012. Republicans have blocked all gun control legislation, and attention is focused now on whether changes in the mental health system might help stop some would-be killers before they go on rampages.

Thompson rolled out the Promoting Healthy Minds for Safer Communities Act of 2014 at a press conference on Capitol Hill on Friday. He said the bill would improve crisis intervention efforts, give law enforcement more tools “to enforce laws and keep guns away from those who shouldn’t have them,” and improve “the submission of mental health records into the criminal background check system.”

Thompson said no law can end gun violence, but “by taking these steps — and requiring background checks on all commercial gun sales — we can make our communities safer and prevent more shootings while respecting the rights of law-abiding gun owners.”

The bill would prohibit the purchase or possession of a firearm by anyone subject to involuntary outpatient commitment if a court finds they pose a threat to themselves or others. Current federal law has been interpreted to apply only to inpatient commitments.

The bill would increase funding for mental health crisis intervention and help states strengthen their own gun laws.

For example, Thompson said, states could allow police to petition for a warrant to temporarily take away someone’s guns when there is reason to think the person poses an imminent risk of harm to himself or others, or temporarily prohibit the purchase and possession of a gun after an involuntary hospitalization on an emergency basis due to serious mental illness.

The bill also would prohibit the purchase or possession of a firearm by anyone convicted of misdemeanor stalking. It also would expand the definition of intimate partners and expand the potential victims of misdemeanor domestic violence to include dating partners, children, grandparents, grandchildren and siblings.